Juice Me Up Before Bikni Deadline! :D

Well, fancy meeting you here....

Okay I know... it's been a while :P

As you all know exams just took over my life recently :( 

For the last 2 months I've been preparing and sitting 11 college exams and I've been so stressed that I've really had no time to workout or come up with new recipes let alone blog :O

But tomorrow is my last exam so I thought I'd get back on the bandwagon :D

A bit of a last minute decision but at the beginning of the month we decided to take a weeks holiday after the exam, The date has crept up on me and suddenly the holiday/bikini wearing extravaganza is happening..... THURSDAY!!

Yeah that's right Thursday :(

Now don't get me wrong I'm dying to get away for a bit of rest and relaxation, but this whole bikini wearing situation?

Not going to be the highlight for me >:(

I haven't completely let my general healthy lifestyle go over study month but It's the coffee breaks, late night energy drinks, Chocolate comforting and lack of gym that have but me back a step.

I've gained 1kg on the scales (which I'm not delighted about but it could be worse) but I feel like my abs (especially obliques) have seriously suffered!

So the past 2 weeks I've really been sticking to my blogilates workouts and they've worked but I need to do something I hate and "crash diet" in the healthiest way possible...

Basically A JUICE CLEANSE!

Juice cleanse's have really become the it thing of 2014 with celebrities like Gwyneth Paltrow, Lauren Conrad and Millie Mackintosh all being fans and admittedly this isn't my first juice cleanse this year either!

I did my first cleanse in January as a kinda new year new me attitude and  My worry about  it at the time was, am I going to put all the weight back on again?

I dropped 2 kgs and over the space of a month of normal eating only put 1/2 a kg back on, so its not only water weight your loosing!

I Know I preach about not using the fadding diets but people forget that even on a juice cleanse your consuimg 1200 calories a day and for only 3 days

And to be honest I'm just feeling a bit "meh" after all this study and I need a bit of a reboot!

I'm following the reboot with go 3 day plan that you can find here! It has loads of free advice, recipes and guidelines and it's the plan I followed for my previous juicing!

I've decided to make my own juices because:

a) I have a good quality juicer to hand

b) It's much much much cheaper(all the fruit cost me €22 in lidl!!)

c)It's kind of satisfying making your own juices and deciding which ones to drink!

So here's my break down of the day's Juices so far:

Morning: Detox juice from Jump Juice (apple,carrot,celery,cucumber and beets)

Lunch: Garden Variety

Mid afternoon snack : Apple-Carrot-Ginger

Dinner :Garden Variety

Dessert: Pine-lime-lemon

Water : 3litres throughout

The great thing about reboot with Joe's recipes is that a lot of them make double so I currently have my leftover apple-carrot-ginger for the morning!( it was definitely my favourite juice of the day! :P)

So how am I doing?

Mood:

Have to be said I'm pretty good! not feeling cranky off caffeine withdrawals or sugar lows so no complaints yet!

Energy:

A bit of a slump at 4 o clock but I had a pick me up after my afternoon juice!

Hunger:

There's this weird hunger you get on a juice cleanse, its not a physical belly rumbling hunger but it's more like you really miss food? Like I'm mentally hungry for food but my body doesn't need it! I especially get cravings when people eat around me but in general I haven't caved yet!!

To be honest I've kept myself really busy all day and as a result haven't even noticed feeling hungry or think about food etc! 

It might be the new way to help through the cleanse?

Il keep you updated on my progress ;)

 

What I've been eating post splurge :)

Hey everybody!

So I had the most amazing weekend away full of relaxation, love and you guessed it EATING

When I say I enjoyed myself I really really enjoyed myself!

I totally let go and ate whatever I wanted for breakfast, lunch and Dinner and had a few chocolate snack in between! :P

By Monday I felt like a stuffed turkey at christmas!

 

But did I regret it? Absolutley not!

Even when you're dieting you need to let loose and enjoy yourself!

Don't regret what you didn't have.

For example we had a huge meal of tapas and wine on Saturday night and enjoyed myself so much and didn't feel the need to worry about calories or fats :)

But all good things come to and end and by Tuesday I was actually craving some fresh fruit and veggies! :P

Here's a quick recap of what I've been eating the past 2 days!

So Tuesday morning I went to the gym early and didn't feel like a huge breakfast so I had a naked juice!

They are super refreshing and actually surprisingly filling! They are also full of antioxidants!

Post gym I had a nakd cocoa loco bar which is a raw fruit, nut and oat bar with some cocoa but full of goodness and really satisfying at only 100 calories a bar how bad ;)

A little pre gym selfie ( can we make a gelfie a thing? :P)

In the library I had my standard Library lunch box of fruit! Honestly I love nibbling on fruit in the library and I think it help pass the time :P

As usual I had my grapefruit, grapes and half a mango! :)

For Dinner I had roast salmon with some roasted veggies and sweet potato mash but as usual I forgot to take a photo (oopsies! )

Today for lunch I had a salad with turkey breast, leftover roasted veggies. avaocado, feta and sunflower seeds! It was honestly really good and it had loads of textures from the crunchy seeds and smooth avocado!

The leaves I used were an organic mix leaf bag from tesco's with rocket, spinach and watercress :)

Again I had another fruit box today with grapefruit, mango and grapes!

I went to Starbucks with my friend Joanne for a break and a chat but wanted to try to avoid caffeine ( I already had a large cup of coffee with lunch) So I opted for a raspberry blended juice which was basically juice blended with ice and to be honest I would get it again! It lasted ages, was very refreshing and  didn't make me feel like I was missing out by not getting a coffee!

For dinner I made a delicious honey and soy salmon with kale, mushroom, green beans and fried rice!

It was actually do good I'm going to have to put up the recipe for you all!! :)

**I know it doesn't look too appetising but it was delish!**

So that has basically been my last 2 days! :)

I'm currently relaxing drinking a Gin and Tonic and painting my nails and before anyone eats the head off my for drinking alcohol (empty calories etc etc.) We're all allowed our little treats every now and again and as alcohol goes a Gin and Slim with a wedge of lemon is as good as it gets! :P

Hope everyone's having a good week so far! :)

xxxxxx

Races and surprise weekend!

As I mentioned I had some social events this week….

On thursday we had student race day! 

It was soooo much fun betting €1-€2 euros on any random horse (mainly a name we liked!) :P

I went with my housemate Jenny and our friends Shauna, Karen, Ellen, Nicole, Sarah and Claire

                                            

This is me and my housemate Jenny! :)

My dress is from misguided and belt is topshop!

Jenny's dress and necklace are both Zara

                                

                                       

Me with Megan, Ellen and Karen!

 Later that night we went clubbing to celebrate the end of college!
Here is what I wore going out!
My skirt is from Tobi (online shop)
My top belongs to Jenny and it was from berska!

I really liked this outfit because it was so summery!
The white skirt as swell was really flattering!

This is me and Joanne my other housemate taking bathroom selfie!!

 Aine , Joanne and Maria( of swearbytheblonde fame!) and I taking photos in the Photo Booth using our phones because we're too cheap to pay :P

As a TOTAL surprise this weekend my AMAZING boyfriend Tim decided to give me an early anniversary present for our 1st year as a couple! Our actual anniversary is in May but we are packed with exams that week so He decided to organise a weekend away in a 4 star hotel! :)

Our lovely complimentary package of strawberries, chocolates and Pressco!

Yuuuum delicious Lily O Briens chocolates! Whihc I might have munched! :P

Tim and I enjoying our glass of Presseco ,lounging in bed!

I'm just after the most amazing deep tissue massage and have an indian head massage in a while now! :)

We're also going out for tapas tonight!

EEEEPP excited!! :D

I'll keep you updated :)

What I ate this week :)

Hello all! :)

Apologise for the lack of posting this week but its been really hectic between finish college, exams, assignments and going out with friends!

So this week I had loads of college work to finish up before we stop for study month! I had a lot of meals on the run so only took some photos of special stuff :P

Here's some chargrilled pepper and tomato soup I bought! Its actually a telco's finest range and it was really nice and rich and I added some goats cheese on top and had a low-fat yoghurt too!

All week I bought lunch boxes of fruit to the library with me. They were a good snack that gave me energy but also something to pick at (other than sweets and chocolate!! :P) 

 This lunch box was all orange fruit :L I had nectarines, cantaloupe, mango and papaya, but really you can use any fruit you have lying around!

Here is a really simple Asian style chicken broth I made late one night! It took 15minutes and lasted me 3 days! 

• I basically fried off half a chilli, some ginger, 2 cloves of garlic in a little coconut oil. 
• Then I added about 1 litre of good low sodium chicken stock, added my 2 chicken fillets , a goooood dash of soy sauce, some more chilli and garlic. 
• I cooked this at a high heat till my chicken was cooked.
•  Then I removed the chicken and shredded it. 
• While doing this I placed some noddles in  the stock, added back in the chicken and some bak choi and Voila!! 

Really filing, hearty and very budget friendly!

And of course we all deserve our treats! :P
Here is mine- a delicious chocolate creme egg cupcake!
To be honest I much preferred the icing and the inside surprise to the actually cupcake itself! :P

I promise I'll post more food next week with some more recipes!

Much love xx

Seven day slim down: Day 6 and 7

I'm so sorry I couldn't actually post these on Sunday and Saturday but my internet at home was awful! So without further ado....

For breakfast on Saturday I had a bowl of alpen no added sugar museli with some almond milk which comes in around 180 calories!

For whatever reason I was really craving some kind of cereal with milk for a change! I think I got a bit sick of smoothies and fruit all the time :P

My cat mittens was not impressed at me eating all the cereal without her! :p

For my mid-morning snack I had half a grape fruit! They were really sweet and delicious but if you prefer it sweeter than I recommend sprinkling some stevia over it :)

After my afternoon snack I decided to do my usual 5 km uphill run because the weather was absolutely smashing and I needed to get out of the house!

Here's a picture I took at the top of the hill after 2.5km! 

I also put it on my instagram page as well! There's a link for it just above my bio and you can follow it to see photos of my day-to-day life!

For Lunch, I went out with my sister to a local cafe called Jim's and we sat outside because it was so sunny!

I got a sweet chili prawn with a peach salad! It was light enough but gave me a really good kick too!

I made some plum, soy and ginger chicken for dinner!

I was craving some Chinese takeaway but obviously couldn't afford the calories so I made his healthy but just as delicious version! (many thanks to my housemate Joanne for this recipe!)

Sunday I started the day with Alpen again because I enjoyed so much Saturday morning!

For my mid-morning snack and afternoon snack I had a half a grapefruit!

I went for a 3.5 km run Sunday as well followed by a tone it up bikni series workout!

My muscles were really sore after the week long of running and exercise :/

However I struggled on with it as it was my last day! 

For lunch I was in a rush but my Mom had picked up an innocent noodle pot on Friday shopping. I was tempted to try it as it looked really good and at only 197 calories I had to try it!

It was really delicious and the shitake mushrooms and miso sauce gave it a rich almost meaty flavour! 

I must say I'd recommend it for anyone to try and I'd like to try more stuff from there range!

Like any traditional Irish family my mother was adamant we were to have a nice roast dinner!

She made a roast chicken but I opted for healthy sides! Instead of fatty mashed potatoes or stuffing I had wilted spinach, mashed carrots and parsnips, broccoli and brussell sprouts!

So it goes to show just because your dieting doesn't mean you have to avoid eating with your family or friends in case of breaking your dieting!

I celebrated St.Patricks day with a wild and rather unforgettable night with my friends last night! :P This is me and my friend Ellen celebrating our Irish-ness! :P

And so there it is folks!

My 7 day slim down completed!!

Its been really long and tough for only 1 week but I managed it!

I'm going to do a post tomorrow about weight loss results and after pictures.

Sorry I couldn't post them all tonight I just don't have time!

Much love!

xxxxx

Seven day slim down : Day 4

Gonna be a quick post tonight because I am soooo tired!!

Today I prepared none of my own meals, so I hope this blog can prove you can get food on the go that is still healthy!

Started off my day by going to the gym with Tim!

I was reallllly tired, this morning so we literally had to be hauled out of bed.

I was in a rush so I did a quick 25 miutes on the stationary bike and cycled 10km so I was happy with my cardio! 

I've gotten a bit sick of running after 5 days solid of running I needed a change!

I know I promised a full summary of my weights room routine but I'm honestly exhausted and have no time but i'll put up a nice long post with photo's and all next week when I have more time!!

I basically did 45 minutes of a very very quick

• Lunge across the room and box squat jumps
• Arms routine (weights, press ups, tricep dips, chin up's)
• Abs (15 mintues)

I did 2 of each of these routines so I had kinda a circuit going on in the end! :)

After the gym, I got a peach and strawberry smoothie in the gym as my breakfast/mid-morning snack. It was lovely and cold refreshing drink on a really warm morning and cooled me down after my gym sesh!

I had Lunch quiet soon after my smoothie (about an hour later) as it was our only break for about the next 3 hours!

I went with Kate, one of my college friends, to a canteen on campus!

I wanted to go for a soup option but they only had the vegetable option I had yesterday so I went for a really nice salad!

  

They have a gorgeous salad bar on campus so your able to pick and choose fro so many amazing options!

I had some :

-Broccoli and feta salad with pesto dressing

- 2 slices of roast turkey

-Carrot and sultana salad

-Moroccan couscous salad

-Mixed salad

-3 pieces of pesto pasta

It was a reaaaly delicious lunch and so cheap for the amount of food I got!

I finished my whole plate and was stuffed till dinner as it was really filling!

I did have one slip today :/ ....................

Instead of having an afternoon snack today I had a starbucks skinny caramel mocha :(

I know, I know.... TOTALLY NOT TIU APPROVED

 

but I really needed a pick me up and 140 calories altogether I think it was worth it! :) 

Starbucks make all their skinny drinks with fat free milk and sugar free syrup but they taste exactly the same as a full fat coffee so its totally worth the trade!

For dinner I went with Tim and his Mom to Nando's for dinner!

Nando's is a super restaurant for Dieters as the food is totally delicious and natural and as long as you avoid the very fatty sides like chips and the desserts you can have a perfectly healthy guilt free meal!

From the Nando's site you can get a calorie meal count so here's some diet friendly, guilt free, delicious options!:

1. Butterfly chicken breast with salad and corn on the cob
2. Chicken pitta/wrap with luso beans
3. 1/2 chicken with spicy rice and macho peas
4. Chicken Wings with ratatouille
5. Avocado and green bean salad
6. Mediterranean salad

I got the avocado and green bean salad and it was absolutely delicious!

 It was crunchy, tasty and rich with gorgeous creamy avocado and spice mango and lime chicken breast!

It tasted amazing and I really liked that it was so good that I actually enjoyed eating out in a restaurant rather than feeling jealous of other peoples food or miserable at the healthy options that look like rabbit food :(

Here's my plate afterwards :P

So other than my food and exercises how am I actually feeling today!

Much the same as yesterday to be honest  :(

Unfortunately I'm totally drained again and my motivation for gymming and eating healthy is decreasing :/

I also feel I'm spending so much time preparing my meals, going for runs and gym that I've had very little time to myself!

I've literally been out of the house from 7am- 10pm and then I crash in the bed!

The weekend can't come soon enough and I need a really good rest!!

Till tomorrow!

xxxx

Let's Move it Monday!!

Hey guys!

Hope no one's suffering from Monday blues!

I love Mondays (unlike most people :P)

I think Monday is always such a great day to start fresh and forget about the gym session you skipped last week or the overindulgence of the weekend (or week :P)

I always love having a really good gym session on a Monday to get me moving for the week!!

Today I did a spinning class in my local gym the mardyke!

It was the perfect high intensity workout that I needed and honestly the hour flew by!

We did 

• 12 minutes of sprints (30 seconds sprint and 30 second recover)
• 15 minutes of resistance "standing" cycling and hoovering (30 seconds on, 20 seconds off)
• 15 minutes of hill training (1 minute high resistance 30 seconds low resistance)
• 2 minutes of arm push up's while standing cycling
• 5 minutes warm up and 5 minute warm down also!

I didn't feel very tired leaving the gym but my legs are starting to stiffen up now so I had a Perfect Fit Protein shake. 

Perfect fit protein is an AMAZING vegan, organic protein shake made by Tone it Up! 

Not only is it good for you but it also tastes delicious!!

You can also use it in loads of recipes such as waffles, pancakes, smoothies and even CAKE!! I'll put up more recipes using it in the coming weeks!

Here's a quick snap of my dinner tonight 

Really basic!! Some grilled turkey breast, sweet potato mash, roasted veggies (mushrooms,green beans, cauliflower,peppers and onion) with some feta and relish too!

Totally delicious, high in protein and packed with vitamins+fibre  from my roasted veggie mix!!

Tomorrow (as we all know) is pancake Tuesday a.k.a the best day ever!!!

I am a FIRM believer that a little bit of what you fancy won't hurt you! So of course I will enjoy a pancake tomorrow (with loooots of nutella :D) because I have eaten clean and gone to the gym all last well and hell yeah I deserve a treat! :P

So enjoy your tursday because I know I will ;)

sweet dreams xxxx

(Kinda) Nicoise Salad

Hey guys!!

So as any college student will know, Thursday night is a night for using up food that's going to expire over the weekend! :P

I've played around with lots of different recipes on my "Use it or loose it Thursdays" as I like to call them,  some good, some bad and some just ugly!

This salad can definitely be called GOOD!

I basically had some Asparagus and salad leaves I needed to use up so instead of the traditional green beans, I used steamed Asparagus!

It was delicious and crunchy! 

Here's the recipe 

1 bag of lamb's leaf and ruby chard lettuce

1/2 an avocado

1 red pepper

1 bunch of asparagus

1 egg

1/4 tin of sweetcorn

1 small tin of john west tuna drained

a few slices of cucmber

Dressing(optional)

2tblsp extra virgin olive oil

3tblsp white wine vinegar

1 tsp of dijon mustard

salt and pepper

Put the egg on to cook for 5-7mins in boiling water with a good pinch of salt

While the egg is cooking chop up the red pepper, cucumber and avocado

Place the lambs leaf and ruby chard into a large bowl (mine wasn't big enough! :P)

 For the last 4 minutes while the egg is cooking, place a steamer (or colander) on top of the boiling water ** BUT NOT TOUCHING THE WATER** Place a lid or plate on top of the steamer and let the egg and asparagus to cook

Turn off the heat and remove the egg from the boiling water. Place the hot egg into cold water for 1 minute. After the minute crack the egg shell and peel it and chop it up. Place all the vegtables and egg on top of the lettuce leaf, add the tuna and sweetcorn and pour over the dressing. Mix all the ingredients together well.

                          AND VOILÁ!!

It was completely delicious, fresh and filling!

This salad is also protein-packed, which is essential after a really tough gym session or run to help muscle recovery and prevent that stiff feeling!

Asparagus is an AMAZING veggie!!

As well as being packed with vitamins A,C,E and K and Packed with vitamin B12, it contains high levels of the amino acid asparagine, which serves as a natural diuretic, and increased urination not only releases fluid but helps rid the body of excess salts

Enjoy this recipe

much love xxxx

Chai and Almond milk Porridge

So here’s my first recipe :)

EXCITEDDDD!!

This is a really super simple recipe for a cold morning or a day where you need loads of energy before a hard gym session. :P

Porridge is an excellent slow energy releasing complex carbohydrate!

Its so handy in college because its quick and easy to make! 

Recipe:

50g of porridge oats (I use flahavans orgainc porridge oats)

100mls of almond milk

100mls of water

1 tablespoon of Chai seeds

Method:

Put all the ingredients into a medium sized saucpan on a medium heat and bring to the boil and then allow to simmer for 3-4 minutes! 

AND THAT’S IT!!!

So simple and warming! You can add dried fruit like raisins or some chopped date, or drizzle some 0% fat Greek yoghurt over it! I personally love it with maple syrup or honey over it. Delicious!

Chai Seeds the highest known vegetarian source of OMEGA 3, and also  are high in Fibre, Protein, & Antioxidants. So by simply adding tiny, tasteless chia seeds to your favourite foods, you can improve your health! I love them and they make an amazing pudding! :) Thats All for now guys. Enjoy! xx

First Post!! (Eeeep!)

So excited to Finally start a Blog! Fitness and Healthy eating are a passion of mine and I’ve been inspired by so many great blogs in my own journey like Taralynn Mcnitt and Karena and Katrina’s “tone it up” that I thought its about time I started my own! :)  December 2012 I began my weight loss journey,after I took a long hard look at myself in the mirror and wanted to change! By June I had loss 30lbs and couldn't believe how my life had changed! I was more positive, had lots more energy and most importantly was happier in myself! :)To date I’m down 36lbs and I intend to keep it off! :)  And this blog is not only about health and fitness, I believe we should all indulge in the sweet things in life too, so I'll be posting some recipes for cheat meals and some baking (nobody's perfect! ;)) :) hope you guys enjoy!! xx